NY Giants' Nick Gates Suffers Gruesome Leg Injury, 'Snapped That S*** In Half'

New York Giants star Nick Gates suffered a horrific leg injury Thursday night ... and it was so bad, he said afterward that he "snapped that s*** in half."

The offensive lineman -- who had just been named a Giants captain for the season -- was attempting to block for Daniel Jones in the first quarter of NY's loss to Washington, when his leg got rolled up on from behind.

In footage of the play, you can see a WFT defender landed right on the back of his leg ... causing it to completely break.

The injury was so bad ... NFL Network did not show a replay of the play.

Gates screamed out in pain for several moments, before trainers and doctors took him off the field and into the locker room on a cart.

Nick is expected to undergo surgery in the D.C. area Friday morning ... and will almost certainly miss the rest of the season.

The good news -- if there can be such a thing with this kind of injury -- Gates was upbeat after it all, with his agent, Jonathan Perzley, saying Nick "laughed on the phone and said 'I snapped that s*** in half.'"

"He will be back," Perzley added. "It would take a lot more than a broken bone to stop that man."

Gates also posted a statement on his social media, promising to return better than ever.

"Going to be a hell of a comeback!" he said.